CASE STUDY
Clutch Car Subscription
OVERVIEW
I led design for Clutch, the very first car subscription service. As part of the original small team of four, we were able to prove the concept as viable with a research-centric, highly iterative process that would eventually enable additional investment to scale, acquire customers, and incorporate as a stand-alone business.
ROLE
Product designer, branding, product manager, user experience
Introduction
In the 1967 re-appraisal for his classic book Designing for People, Henry Dreyfuss wrote:
“We need a car to fit the daily commuter, but at the push of a button on the dashboard, it will expand to take care of the family on weekends.”
We want our car to change with our lives.
Fifty years later: Enter car subscription. In 2014, as part of a small team at Kenzie Lane Innovation, we set out to test an idea. Will consumers give up the traditional idea of owning and financing a car and adopt access to a fleet of cars for a flat monthly payment?
THE CHALLENGE
Create an experience valuable enough to encourage car-buyers to pay a premium to subscribe instead.
Launching an MVP
We built a simple marketing site (Figure 1) and a rudimentary iOS app (Figure 2). The website had one CTA, sign-up via iOS app.
Once in the app a user could sign up, provide payment, and request a car delivery (we called this a “flip”). Using this website and app we signed up our first fifty members and began observing.
To request a flip a member would choose a body style, number of passengers, and time and location of the delivery. We found that 99% of flips would happen at home on Saturday or at the office during a weekday afternoon.
Figure 1: The first iteration of the Clutch car subscription marketing site. The only action is to download the member app.
Figure 2: The first iteration of the member app core experience, requesting a car delivery (flip). To request a flip a member would choose a body style (1), number of passengers (2), and time and location of the delivery (3).
Iterating the core experience
Early versions of the member app allowed a member to choose a flip by body style (see A on Figure 3). This worked well for a member but we soon learned everyone wanted a sedan on Monday and a truck on Friday. We ran into inventory issues.
Next, we created the concept of “recipes” (B). Members chose a use-case and we provided a car to match. This worked better for inventory but introduced some anxiety to the member. Imagine getting all dressed up for a special night out and we deliver a convertible. So long perfectly coiffed hairdo.
To relieve some anxiety around delivering an unknown car we added comments to a flip (C). A member would describe their use case and we, the car matching experts, would find the right ride. Less anxiety, but a bit friction-y.
In the years since we launched the member app our services have gotten better at predicting availability. The app presents what car is likely to be available (D). This experience brings us a little closer to the right balance of transparency for the member and flexibility of inventory.
Figure 3: The first version of the app (A) allows a member to choose a vehicle by body style, which led to inventory problems. Next version (B) had the member choose a use case instead which led to anxiety around receiving an unknown car . We added notes (C) which was too friction-y. Later version (D) struck a better balance of transparency for the member and flexibility of inventory.
Exploring the brand
In early interviews with our first fifty members, we noticed a theme. Our members were taking special trips. Some would take the scenic route home from work. Some would drive 4 hours just to get decent boiled peanuts. Our members were making memories because they had a car that fit their need.
Special occasions, unlocked by having the right car for the right occasion, would become the concept on which to build the brand. Imagery focused on the occasion, with members in focus. The cars were abstracted. New members received hand-written “thank you” notes, t-shirts, and playful sunglasses when flipping into a convertible.
We learned that subscription is not the product. The product is these special moments.
Selling the story
We put forth a massive effort around selling this story. We worked with a local student filmmaker to produce a series of shorts focusing on the unique, human aspects of the service. We even produced a few videos on our own.
We also began testing advertising. The goal with ads was to see what would get the user into the app or download the quickest. Advertising exploration was a rich exercise. Using Facebook and Google targeted advertising we were able to focus on people likely in the market to buy a new car and offer them a new option - subscribe instead.
We were able to define three primary demographic groups and pick a piece of the subscription story that speaks to that group.
The three primary subscription demographic groups:
1) The Do-it-all Family
2) Empty Nesters
3) The Sales Professional
Outcome
With a 2+ year effort to build an engaging consumer experience around subscription we were able to gain 600+ subscribers, perform 5,000+ flips, maintain an >80 Net Promotor Score, and most importantly, sell the concept along with our learnings and service tools to dealerships who are now operating it at scale.